‘Is Sarfaraz Khan not selected because of his surname?’: Congress’ Shama Mohamed sparks row over cricketer’s exclusion
New Delhi: Congress spokesperson Shama Mohamed has sparked a fresh debate after questioning the exclusion of Mumbai batter Sarfaraz Khan from the India A cricket squad. Mohamed sought to know whether the cricketer’s surname played a role in his omission.
The national selectors recently named squads for two upcoming first-class matches against South Africa A, led by Rishabh Pant, but Sarfaraz—who has had a strong run in domestic cricket—was notably left out.
Reacting to the decision, Mohamed posted on social media platform X.
The post, which appeared to take a veiled dig at India head coach and former BJP MP Gautam Gambhir, triggered sharp political reactions and drew attention on social media.
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla hit back at Mohamed, accusing her of politicising sports and injecting communal overtones into team selection.
“This lady & her party is sick. After calling Rohit Sharma fat—she and her party want to divide even our cricket team on communal lines? Desh ka partition karke mann nahi bhara kya?” he said.
He further added, “In the same team Mohammad Siraj and Khaleel Ahmed will play! Stop dividing India on communal lines, caste lines.”
This is not the first time Mohamed has faced criticism over her social media posts involving cricketers. Earlier in March, she was reprimanded by the Congress party after she made remarks about then-captain Rohit Sharma’s fitness. The now-deleted post had read: “Rohit Sharma is fat for a sportsman.”
The exclusion of 28-year-old Sarfaraz, who recently underwent a fitness transformation and has consistently performed in the domestic circuit, has generated widespread discussion online, with many fans and former players calling his omission “unfair”.
PTI